Tomorrow

This time tomorrow, we will have picked Gudrun up, God willing managed to get home, and everyone will be snugly in bed, dreaming only good things.

I have to make a confession:  I hate the first couple of days.  Everyone’s a little off balance, everyone is kind of feeling each other out, no one is quite sure of one another.  It’s painful.  This year, I’m prepared.

Saturday, I am giving Gudrun the option to come with me to brunch with some girlfriends.  Saturday night, my sister will be down with her kids for a good ole fashioned American cook out.  Sunday we will discuss the family questionnaire and I found out about a free concert of Disney music at Hurkamp Park, so we’re going to pack a picnic and go out there after taking her around to see the town.

I’m making lists of possible activities.  I’ve spoken with teenagers—I hit the jackpot with Michelle, a girl with a car who has offered to take Gudrun to new student orientation and show her around the high school.  Concert tickets procured for Friday night.  Although I had no plan to do so, I have been cleaning the house.  Hurricane Leah is up north with my friend, Melissa, and that gave me free reign to do a lot more cleaning—the car is virtually spotless.  I hauled my shop vac out to the driveway—Go me!  I’ve vacuumed, folded a couple of loads of laundry, done the dishes, and picked up the chaos.  In the morning, I will finish laundry, run to the grocery store, mop floors and run our old printer out to the dump to the electronics recycling program—our new printer was installed today.  I chatted with Gudrun last night and she kindly assured me that as she has a younger brother at home, it is not usually the case that her own house is clean all the time.

But of course, I want her to like us and like it here.  The rational part of my brain reminds me that a clean house doesn’t mean someone’s going to like me or not like me.  But I feel it betters my chances.

I’m trying to remain calm.  I know this is only a temporary situation, but I seem to be the same bundle of nerves and excitement that I was a year ago at this time.  She and her family seem quite nice and down-to-earth and I alternate between abject terror that this kid from Europe is going to hate us and a weird kind of quiet confidence that we’re all going to do fine.  I guess tomorrow we’ll see the beginnings of which is which!